If you are a Christian (avid church goer) ask yourself; who is to blame? The "non-believer" or is it the church?
If you are not a Christian, tell me what it is. Is it because we believe in "a man in the sky bossing us around"?
Lets start at ground zero. I, as an avid church goer, blame the church. There I said it. IT IS THE CHURCH. By the church, I mean the congregation, the people who run it, CHRISTIANS.
Here is why:
- We preach love, but we act judgmental
- We are flying hypo critics
**God accepts you the way you are, but wants you to change for Him**
(Loves you but doesn't mean what you do is okay)
"...but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,..."
-Romans 12:2
And even I have been very judgmental at times, but the church has done a HORRIBLE job at accepting people into church. For example; the gay, bi, lesbian community. The church pushes these people away like they are the sickest people on earth. SHAME ON YOU... How the heck are we going to fix the people we want to fix if we don't allow them into the ONE PLACE ON EARTH where they can be forgiven and helped.. Now that I have said that, I don't believe that homosexuality is okay. It is a sin. But there is forgiveness and healing. We cannot help those that need help if they can't even make it to our doorstep. We do not reach out with love this way.
I apologize to those who have been pushed away from the church because of me or any other christian.
So now, you Christians, we need to now ask ourselves how we can be more accepting and loving. Practice what we preach, and grow the church of God.
So to you non-believers. I know we may be judgmental and off putting, but put aside the people for a moment. What is it about the christian faith that puts you off? The "morals" we try to abide by are not unreasonable. Forgiveness, love, peace, and kindness, are all by society's point of view, great to uphold and make you generally a "good person". Is the idea of sacrifice hard to grasp? Is it because we believe in an all powerful God? Or is it a fear of rules? I really don't know what you think because I have never been on your side. But please tell me or if you have a Christian friend ask them!
Your brother in Christ,
Derek Tilt
I'm not sure if this was a legitimate question to the nonreligious, but I'll go ahead and try to offer insight. That said, I'm not trying to argue and trying to convince me that my beliefs are wrong is going to be a futile effort. You asked a question, and I'm giving an answer, plain and simple. While I can't speak for everyone, I can at the very least offer my own thoughts and hopefully you don't end the day convinced that I'm a raving satanist.
ReplyDeleteWhy is Christianity off-putting? I could address this in my own words, but first I’ll respond to the statements you made (so as to clear up any confusion). It’s not the (basic) morals that drive people away. Forgiveness, kindness, peace, truth, etc. – you don’t have to be religious to follow these things. I haven’t picked up a bible since I was nine and I still try to be the best person I can be because I know that it’s right.
It’s not a fear of rules, either. After all, society is governed by rules. The commandments are guidelines that just make sense to any moralistic person – again, you don’t need to believe in Jesus to follow their guidance, it only takes some common sense.
The belief in a deity is, admittedly, a little off-putting. I can’t imagine putting my full faith in something I can’t see or feel. Christians seem to see everything as black and white, good and bad, God and the devil; I like to think that things are a little grayer than that. Not to mention I still remember the wrathful, cruel god from the Old Testament. Sure, he came out in the New Testament as kind and loving, but I distinctly remember him burning down an entire city because they didn’t respect him enough. Is that all-loving? Nope.
But onto what I really wanted to say: you hit the nail on the head. No offense, but Christians are typically hypocritical and judgmental group I’ve ever encountered. That, of course, is a generalization, but you get my drift. You preach acceptance, but accept nobody. Everyone that doesn’t follow your beliefs is wrong and stupid – it’s like nobody even tries to just tolerate everyone else. I don’t know how many times I’ve been told that I’m going to hell, that I’m wrong, that everything bad that happens to me happens because I don’t go to church or recite bible verses. Honestly, just let me go to hell and be done with it. I’m tired of my own friends telling me that they can’t accept who I am simply because I don’t wear a necklace with a cross on it. I’m not religious, like I said. Agnosticism is not knowing, Atheism is not believing, and I, my friend, am not caring. As far as I’m concerned, people can follow whatever religion they want, or whatever parts of a religion they want, so long as it doesn’t harm me or others. Why is that so hard for “bible-thumpers” to grasp?
To make matters worse, the hypocrites ruin my opinion of all Christians. The people who post bible verses and then go to get shitfaced and have sex with whoever walks by them first. The people who spread rumors and lies and then talk about how they follow the lord. Quite honestly, it’s these people who disgust me and turn me away from the entire organization (even moreso than the above paragraph explained).
Honestly, without Christianity, I don’t feel like I’m evil or going to hell, and if I’m going to go to hell for accepting everyone and tolerating everyone for their own beliefs, orientations, personalities, and vices, then maybe I missed what heaven and hell are supposed to represent. I’m sorry this got so long-winded, and I’m sorry if I said some things that you didn’t want to read or that upset you in any way, but I’ve always wanted to try to explain this to someone, and I felt as if your invitation was a chance to do so, even if it’s on a small scale.